The nice weather brings out new views of the city.

This ByWard Market building has a pleasing red brick colour, and a decorative clock tower. But maybe that clock tower has another function. I was surprised each morning I noticed it that the red brick stands out in the view as a simply a typical low-rise, and the black glass portion looks like a mid-rise building somewhere beyond it in the back ground.

Architects and planners frequently tell us the black recedes, almost to the point of invisibility.(?)  Too often though I think it looks heavy and depressing. It’s nice to find this Teron example of the colours working like they should:

Grand and Toy is gone. Hallelujah. I must confess to getting annoyed at all those store windows that get plastered with happy faces or giant flowers. I do understand the merchant wants to put display racks against all the walls, but the sheer static frozen posed stock photos are not much fun.

Then I saw what the new owners of the downtown grocer at Bank / Somerset put up instead of happy faces:

Not even pictures of happy, colourful produce, or fading newsprint showcasing this weeks “specials”. It does not enhance the Bank St shopping experience. If the merchant doesn’t want the display, rent it out to someone who does, or raid the Gr 1 art at Elgin PS.

I will now look with a bit more favour on the Shoppers Drug Mart happy seniors and the awkward smile on Mr Tuxedo at Moore’s.

Also emerging into spring is the remains of this bike:

Here is was just a few weeks ago:

And back in mid winter:

And what would spring be without hordes of sidewalk shoppers… err bar goers … err smokers … err evacuees from a fire drill who wait out the duration by blocking the sidewalk for everyone else. The guy with the bull horn didn’t think of crowd management.